Dukan Diet

Im a hermit. Is it okay to be a hermit? I like to go for walks, and I certainly get enough Vitamin D by pulling weeds in the yard and hanging out at soccer practice, but if I had a choice Id prefer to hang out at home in my jammies.

Its too bad WebVan went under. Itd be great to have milk, bananas, and orange juice delivered (why is it were ALWAYS out of those things?).

And dont forget to bring fresh coffee.

There you go: thats a business venture to get behind! Breakfast delivery for lazy busy moms.

Or you could just load up the crockpot. its probably easier.


The Ingredients.
serves 8

1 (30-ounce) package frozen hash brown potatoes
2 cups diced already-cooked meat (whatever leftovers you have in the house. Great way to use up shredded chicken, pot roast, corned beef, ham, turkey, or any combo you might have)
2 cups diced already-cooked veggies (asparagus, broccoli, roasted veggies, whatever)
8 eggs
1 cup milk (cow, soy, rice, goat)
2 cups shredded cheese (your choice, we usually have a combo of mozzarella and cheddar)
salt and pepper to taste at the table

The Directions.

Use a 6 quart slow cooker and spray the insert with cooking spray. Dump the still-frozen hashbrowns into the pot. In a mixing bowl, whip together the eggs and milk and stir in your cut up veggies, meat, and cheese.
Dont season right now, because your meat and veggies will have whatever flavor they had when they were first cooked (and ham and corned beef tend to have a lot of salt taste already), but instead season at the table. Pour this mixture on top of the hashbrowns.

Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours (its exactly 7 in my elume) or on high for about 3-4. If youve never cooked breakfast overnight in your cooker, opt for the low end of the cooking time. You can always let it cook on high if its not quite done in the morning, or let it happily sit on warm until youre wide awake and ready for breakfast.

Michelle says she cant cook food overnight, though, because the smell keeps her awake! I dont have a suggestion for that... sorry. :-)

The Verdict.

This is a GREAT way to use up extra food from having company over or food left from holiday dinners. I know some of you are uncomfortable not having an exact recipe to follow, and I get it. I really do.
I promise though, that there is little room for error when crockpotting. If you like the ingredients going in, theyll taste good mixed in a casserole. If you cant stand asparagus, please dont use it! Use what tastes good TO YOU.

I know, I know. I sound like SUCH a mom...!

more breakfast dishes for the all day jammy club:
Mexican Breakfast Casserole
Original Hashbrown Casserole
Breakfast Potatoes and Sausage
Egg, Feta, and Mushroom Casserole
Breakfast Risotto
Baked Oatmeal
Grits
Pancakes
Yogurt
Hardboiled Eggs (no! dont try these!)

Low Grain Is Good for Everyone

I don’t think that I have an intolerance for grain, i.e. a gluten sensitivity, but it is so common and the biochemistry is so obvious, that it is only prudent to avoid wheat and related grain products. A low or gluten-free diet is also similar to the other common healthy diets, e.g. low carb and anti-inflammatory.

Gluten-free diets came to my attention recently in two ways. First, I saw Food, Inc., a documentary movie about abuses by multinational food processors. After that movie, I felt like I was a goose being readied for foie gras. Second, was a newspaper article on the expense of a gluten-free diet and the challenges of avoiding gluten.

I haven’t had to worry about wheat contaminating my diet, but I am sympathetic to the celiacs that I know who have to labor with a sloppy and exploitative food industry that uses the cheapest ingredients to compose the processed foods that are consumed in modern diets -- processed foods are complex blends of many different potential allergens from innumerable sources throughout the world.

A Celiac Diet Is Good for All
Fortunately, the answer to pervasive gluten is just a modest modification of the basic anti-inflammatory diet that I recommend on this blog. Unfortunately, people who have already developed gluten intolerance, have probably had the problem for years before diagnosis and that means that their intestines have already suffered major physiological alterations and they have problems absorbing nutrients and vitamins. Celiacs also, because of their chronic inflammation and autoimmunity, tend to readily develop food allergies and other autoimmune diseases. The recommended anti-inflammatory diet will help to avoid celiac, put celiacs into remission and avoid development of subsequent allergies and autoimmune diseases.

Vitamin D Is Usually Deficient (and a source of inflammation)
The basic anti-inflammatory diet starts with a return to optimal vitamin D with the use of an initial blood test, followed by high level supplements to reach a suitable level and then maintenance with D3 supplements of usually 2,000-5,000 IU per day. Depending on the D3 supplement, vitamin A will also need to be supplemented, because it interacts with vitamin D. Remember that sunshine is only effective in producing adequate vitamin D if you do not suffer from chronic inflammation. I would assume that all celiacs tend to be vitamin D deficient.

A Low Carb Diet Is Easier for Celiacs
The next component of the basic diet is low carbohydrates, that means a minimum of high glycemic foods, which means to avoid sugar and starch, do not cook vegetables more than necessary and don’t over-chew your veggies. This is good for celiacs, because it reduces the need for common grain foods that no one should eat: bread, cereal, pasta, etc. Everyone should lower their consumption of these wheat products in solidarity for celiacs and for general good health. Cereal is a very bad idea for children!

Most Vegetable Oils Are Unhealthy
Most vegetable oils contribute substantially to world-wide inflammation and celiacs don’t need the added burden of inflammatory omega-6 vegetable oils. Only olive oil and butter should be used. Saturated fats are safer than typical polyunsaturated vegetable oils.

Eat Wild Fish or Tons of Fresh Flax
Most people eat too little omega-3 long chain fatty acids, since these are most abundant in fatty fish, such as wild salmon (farmed fish are fed corn and have reduced omega-3 and increased omega-6 fats.) Few vegetable sources are available, since the omega-3 fatty acids are unstable and present in leaves rather than seeds. Flax seeds have short chain omega-3 fatty acids and must be freshly ground and consumed by the cupful, because the conversion to the long chains, in which they are useful, is very inefficient. Most celiacs will need to use fish oil (or krill oil, if fish is not tolerated) supplements (4-8 EPA/DHA capsule per day taken in a meal rich in fats for bile uptake) to balance the ubiquitous inflammatory omega-6 in their diets.

Grassfed Meat/Eggs Are Your Friends
Celiacs should seek out grass/pasture fed meats, eggs and wild caught fish. Corn-fed animals have higher levels of omega-6 fats and these contribute to dietary inflammation. Celiacs can usually eat meat and fish and these are very healthy foods. Red meat was not shown to contribute to degenerative diseases, it was the high carbs eaten with the meat that produced the inflammation that contributed to heart disease. (Remember that statins only decrease cardiovascular disease because they inadvertently lower inflammation, not because they lower serum lipids, LDL.)

No, No’s: HFCS and trans fats
High fructose corn syrup and trans fats are inflammatory and unhealthy for anyone, and should be avoided as much as wheat gluten. Fruits should be eaten as seasoning, since their fructose is not healthy and they also contain ample sucrose.

Most People Would Be Healthier on a Celiac Diet
The anti-inflammatory diet proposed here for celiacs should be uniformly healthy, since it provides optimal vitamins (D, C, B12, etc.), low starch/sugar/carbs, an optimal omega-3 to -6 fatty acid ratio, increased meat and saturated fats, and avoids HFCS and trans fats. The only major adjustment for celiacs would be avoidance of individual food allergens, more attention to vitamin supplements to compensate for poor absorption and replacement of wheat by rice, potatoes, etc. The low carbohydrate nature of the diet makes it more approachable, since typical carbs, such as bread and cereal are avoided and replaced with meat and vegetables.

I look forward to advice and suggestions from readers who have experience with gluten-free diets.

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